Mower.



L. O. EKREM.

MOWER.

APPLIOATION. HLED JUNI: 21, 1911:

Patented May 21, 1912.

2 SHEETS-@HEBT l.

ATTORNEYS L.r 0. EKRBM.

MOWBR.

APPLICATION HLBDKJUNE 21. 1911.

1,027,190.y PatntedMay2L1912.

2 SHBBTS-SHEBT 2.

Jaw#

ATTORNEYS the edges of walks,

. both use in manipulating the mower, which can fully describedhereinafter 'UMTED STATES PATENT onirica LABS OLSEN EKREM, OF COPPERCITY, MICHIGAN.

MOWEB.

Specication of Letters Patent.

- Appneation mea :une 21, 1911. semina. 634,416.

cutting mechanism; Fig. 6 is a fragmentary section showing certain ofthe details of construction of the cutter bar, the knife car rier,fand aknife; Fig. 7 is a fragmentary, perspective view showing part of asuitable device'` for permitting the operation of the mower; and Fig. 81s a fragmentary plan view of part of the mowing mechanism, showingcertain constructive details.

Before proceeding to a more detailed explanation of my clearlyunderstood that while the mower 1s particularly useful in trimminglawns, it can also be advantageouslyl employed for other purposes, andfor cutting. vegetation other than grass.-

vThe cutting mechanism proper, of my mower, is similar inv appearance tothat of the ordinary reciprocating knife mower. I have however, found itadvisable to modify this construction, so thatl vthe knives themselvesconsist of which can be removed and replaced one at a time, asnecessary.

Certain of the details of construction, shown for example herewith, formno part of the invention, and can be varied in 'accordance withindividual preference land special conditions, without deviatin To allwhom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lans O. Ensim, a subject of the Kingj of lNorway,and a resident of Copper ity, in the county of Houghton and State ofMichigan, have in,- vented a new and` Improved Mower, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and ex-` actdescription.

This invention relates to mowers for mowing lawns, and. for other likepurposes, an has reference more particularly to lthe combination of a'mower having 'means whereby itcan be manually operated, Withmeans forsupporting the mower upon the person of the operator, so that both handsof the operator are left free for use in manipulating the moweroperating mechanism.

vThe invention also relates to a mower -which has a cutter bar, amovable knife carrier, and a pluralityv of removable, inter-` changeableknife or cutting elements 'secured to the'car-rier.

The object of the invention'is to provide a simple, strong and durablemower for cutting the grass of lawns, for trimming and for other,similar purposes, which is compact in form and light in weight, whichcan be manipulated with ease and facility, which has associatedtherewith means for partly supporting it upon the person of theoperator, ls o that hands of the operator are left free for appendedclaims.

Referring more ings, I provide a post or body 10, of elongated, tubularform, with which is asso. ciated at the upper end a bifurcated member,11 having a sleeve 12 which receives the upper end of the body 10, andby means of which it is secured thereto. Between the sides Aof the fork11 is journaled a spindle 13 having thereon a bevel gear 14 in mesh witha bevel pinion 15 secured rigidly upon the upper projecting end of aAdriving shaft 16 located within the tubular body 10 and jourbe easilyguided when in use, and which is so constructed that the differentelement-sof the cutting mechanism can be removed or` replaced whennecessary, without disturbing the remaining elements.

Theinvention consists in the construction and combination of parts to bemore and particularly set forth in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part ofthis speciication, in lwhich similar characters of tively at the upperand lower .ends of the reference indicate corresponding parts .in allbody. At the extremities of the spindle 13 the views, and in whichFigure 1 is a perspectiveA view of an emlbodiment. of my inventionshowing the same in use; Fig. 2 is an enlarged, longitudinal section ofthe mower, parts being broken away; Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view ofthe cutting mechanism `of 1 .the mower; Fig. 4 is a transverse sectionon the line L1.-,-4 of Fig. 5; Fig. 5 is an enlarged,

fragmentary plan view ofA a part ofthe are secured hand cranks apart,and having grips 20 by means of which they can-be easily manipulated.-At the lower end, the 21 provided with a stud 22 for a purpose .whichwill appear hereinafter.

At `the lower end of the tubular body is secured a sleeve 23 having afork bracket 24 mounted thereon, between the sides of which is journaleda roller 25 which movably sup- -Patented May 21, 1912.

independent elements' f the essence of the invention as definedtheparticularly to the drawnaled in bearings 17 and 18 provided respec'invention it" should ,b e

19 positioned 180 e shaft 16 has a crank arm ports the lower part of thedevice on the ground. The bracket 24 at the under side of the body has alongitudinal extension 26 to which is secured t-he cutter bar 27 of thecutting mechanism. The cutter bar has the length thereof arrangedtransversely of the length of the body and is angularly disposed withrespect thereto, so that when the body is arranged at an angle with'thehorizontal, the plane of the cutter bar itself is substantially levelwith the ground. The cutter bar is of the usual, serrated construction,and has the teeth 28 thereof provided with downwardly disposed ribs ordepressions 29, which are designed to lend strength and rigidity to thebar.

Slidably mounted upon the cutter bar is a knife carrier 30, likewiseprovided with teeth, and having the rear portion 31 upwardly offset tocorrespond to the similarly offset rearportion 32 of the cutter bar. The

knife carrier is movable transversely of the i length of the body 10,yand is provided with a slotted extension 33 which receives the stud 22of the crank arm 21, so that as the shaft 16 is revolved, the knifecarrier will be reciprocated. The knifelcarrier has secured thereto thecutting blades, 4as will be described more particularly hereinafter.

To guide the carrier in its reciprocating motion I provide a pluralityof guide bolts 84, which are received in guide slots 35 ot' the cutterbar, and thus permit a limited movement of the cutter carrier in thedirection of its length, and constrain the carrier to move injuxtaposition with the cutterl bar and in the direction of the length ofthe same, also preventing twisting or distortion of the parts. The guidebolts comprise hollow, threaded engaging under the cutter bar, andarranged to receive countersunk screws 38 extending through suitableopenings of the carrier. The sleeves it will be understood, are locatedin the slots 35.` guide devices is shown most clearly in Fig. near thecenter, has a V-shaped, upwardly disposed part 39, which Vextends-overthe slotted extension 33v and thecrank 21 of the shaft 16, andpreventsthe entrance of grass or other material which would tend tocollect in the mechanism. A guard shield 40 extends lrearwardly andupwardly from under the pose.

part 39 of the carrier, and serves a likepur- It is secured in placeupon the bracket 24, by means of bolts 41. 4A. set screw 42 holds itwith respect to the tubular body 10.

The knife carrier is of serrated form, and

at the end of each of its teeth has a downwardly oiset point 43. Theteeth are provi ed for the purpose of lending to them strength andrigidity. Theknives or blades 45 have' sleeves 36 having heads 37 Theconstruction of thel with longitudinal o'sets or ribs 44' with thecutting edges 46. Each knife, near its point, has an opening 47 and anupward, offset or socket 48 in which is received the oint 43 of one ofthe carrier serrations. ach blade is secured in position additionally,by means of a set-screw 49. The parallel edges of the adjacent bladesare in juxtaposition, as is indicated in dotted outline in Fig. 5. Theedges of the blades project beyond the corresponding edges of thecarrier teeth, and coperate with the edges of the cutter bar teeth inshearing through the grass 'or other vegetation to be' severed.

I employ with my mower a suitable device for supporting itupon the bodyof the operator. This device comprises, preferably,.a belt 50 includinga 'fabric cover, and a suitably bent, metal plate adapted to encompassthe waist of the operator, and supported by means of suspender or likestraps 51 passing over the shoulders and provided with buckles 52. Atthe opposite sides of the belt are located studs or projections 53having enlarged heads. Supporting arms 54, which are preferably slightlybent, are adjustably secured at the extremities of the sides of the forkl1 by means of a cross bolt 55. Each arm 54 has at the end, a bayonet orlike slot 56, 'by means of which it can be attached at one of the studsV53. Slotted retaining bars 57 are secured to the bracket 11,

near the lend of the bodyv 10, and receive bolts 58 in the slotsthereof, the bolts being carried by `v'the arms 54 intermediate theirends. The arms 54 are connected by a cross bar 59. By means of theslotted retaining bars 57 and the bolts 58, the arms 54 can be securedin different, adjusted, relative positions.

When the' mower is in use,v it is supported upon the body of theoperator, by means of the belt 50, which receives the arms 54, thesehaving first been angularly adjusted to adapt the device to the .heightof the operator. The lower end of the mower is supported bymeans of. itsroller 25, upon the ground, and can be easily advanced along the same asthe operator walks, both hands of the operator being free to actuate thecranks 19. As the shaft 16 is rotated, the cutter carrier isreciprocated, and the cut ting device thus becomes operative to severthe grass.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. In a mower, a cutter bar, a movable knife carrier,and a plurality of removable, interchangeable knives secured to saidcarrier, said cut-ter bar and said knife carrier having teeth, saidknives being of tapered form corresponding'to said teeth.

`2. In amower, a cutter bar, a movable knife carrierfhaving offsetpoints, and a plurality of removable,- interchangeable knives secured tosaid carrier and each havug a'socket adapted to receive one of sald oset points. A n

3. In a mower, a cutter bar having teethl a movable knife carrier havingteeth each having the oint offset, and a removable, interchangeableknives of tapered form, each having an'opening and an Y Offset forming asocket adptedto receive one of'said points of said carrier'.

' 4. In a mower, a cutter bar having teeth,

n a movable knife carrier having teeth each having-the point offset, avplurality of removable,A interchangeable knives of Atapered luralityofv form, each having an opening and an offset-15 forming a socketadapted to receive one of said points of said carrier, and a set-screwfor securing each of said knives in position,A said cutter bar and saidcarrier having strengthening ribs. 1

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing Witnesses.

LARS OLsEN EKREM.

Witness-es:

GEORGE NORDSTROM, ANTON ANDERSON. f L*

